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REUNIONS

     
     

Recent Pictures:

29-Feb- 2024

Rick Parent   and  Tom Slusher - 2024

Don Kloepfel  and  Don Kunego - 2018

Stan Lukasik  and  Ed Martin - 2013

Roy Bruk  and  Harry Field - 1967

 
   

Fort Bragg

Events

 3-Jun-2016

Memorial Stone Unveiling  at U.S. Army Spec Opns Plaza

Joint Ceremony and Reunion - 2nd CA  w/ 41st  and  29th CA

 
   
14-Oct -2011

92nd Civil Affairs Battalion (ABN) ACTIVATION Ceremony

Pictures from Fort Bragg

HHC 92nd CA is 'Lineage Successor' to the 2nd CA

 

The  2016 Reunion  and the  Memorial Stone Unveiling

at the U.S. Army's Special Operations Memorial Plaza, Fort Bragg, NC.

for the 2nd Civil Affairs Company (III and IV CTZ)

with the 41st Civil Affairs Company (II-CTZ)

and the 29th Civil Affairs Company (I-CTZ)

 
 

Chris Phoenix  and  Joe Napp

but

Tom Slusher has his hand on Chris - Hey Chris, remember me ?

 

Don Kunego (C) getting Two Old Friend Together

Tom Slusher (L)  and  Chris Phoenix (R)

Together Again,  After 50 Years !

 

Rick Parent, Chris Phoenix, Tom Slusher and Bill Unger

 

Reunion Host - Brigadier General  E.  John  Deedrick

then Deputy Command General,  U.S. Army's  1st Special Forces.

Doing a  Reconnaissance of the Area  before the beginning of the Official Ceremony

Gary Faith (Ex-LT 41st CA - with White Hat is at least 6'-4"  but  General Deedrick is a bit taller !

 
BG  E.  'John'  Deedrick  retired as a  LT GEN (3 Star - Lieutenant General)  in 2023
 

Brigadier General   E.  'John'  Deedrick,   Host of the Memorial Stone Unveiling Ceremony

partially hidden at right but bending over to help  Unveil the Memorial Stone

 

Host of the Memorial Stone Unveiling Ceremony

Brigadier General   E.  'John'  Deedrick

Deputy Commanding General,  1st Special Forces

(In BDU {Battle Dress Uniform} - aka Commo Fatigues with Green Beret)

 

WELCOME   HOME

and

THANK   YOU

Official Recognition after 50 Years.

Some of us came home  to Unfriendly  Family,  Friends  and  Neighbors.

Our Service is now Memorialized in Stone.

Our little understood and unrecognized special CA work

in the many extremely remote locations in a far away country.

Our fellow  Americans now belatedly acknowledged our field work via the

U.S. Army Special Operations Command,  Fort Bragg,  N.C.

 

Wreathing Laying Event

In the background,

Members of 92nd Civil Affairs Battalion (Abn)

Lineage Successor to the 2nd Civil Affairs Company

 

The  2nd CA GUYs at the Memorial Stone

U.S. Army Special Operations Command Memorial Plaza

Fort Bragg,  N.C.

 

The Commemorative Stone for The Civil Affairs Companies - Vietnam

was placed in the Green Grass at the right

closest to the Bronze Bruce Statue

in picture above

 

Joe Napp  and  Don Kloepfel

Combat Medic Don Kloepfel served  3 Years in 2CA from 1966-1969

Don's Third Year with 2CA's 11th Platoon  attached to   MAC-V Team 19  at DMZ area - Dong Ha

when the NVA Regiments   attacked a  U.S.M.C.  Battalion.   "LT, please do not ask ! "

   

All of Don's Service Records were lost in the 1973 Saint Louis Records Center Fire.

But Don Kunego had copies of their Second Increment Deployment Order,

Joe Napp had copies of the 2CA multi-year Day-by-Day 2CA Diary.

Don Kloepfel NOW gets his Meds from the VA and a got few Dollars too.

Don 'Paid Off' the Mortugage,  bought a used Harley Hog,

and had few pennies left for  Valerie and Don  to get to Fort Bragg from Spokane, WA.

 
Wives and the Guys
 
Link to pictures  from David Gunn - Ex 41st CA
 

If you have personal pictures,

please forward them to Joe Napp

 

 
 
 
 

Father  Phil Denig,  U.S. Army Chaplain  (Ret - 1964 // 2002)

reconnecting with

1SGT Shawn Miller

who was our  2011  First Reunion Escort Guide

Former SF Medical SFC   is now   1SGT  in a  92nd CA Company

Firm Hand Shake  and  Great Smile

 
 
 

   

The 2011 Reunion of the 2nd Civil Affairs Company

   

and  the

    

Activation Ceremony of the 92nd Civil Affairs Battalion (Airborne)

   

   
   

The  Memorial Wall at the Headquarters Building

of the

U.S. Army Special Operations Command

Fort Bragg, N.C.

immediately adjacent to the Meadows Field Parade Ground

used for the

Activation Ceremony of the 92nd Civil Affairs Battalion (Airborne)

 

The Official Activation Ceremony

started with a  U.S. Army Band Playing  the  National Anthem

and then the  Activation Order  was read

which included a proclamation that

Headquarters & Headquarters Company  of the  92nd Civil Affairs Battalion

was the

Lineage Successor

of the

2nd Civil Affairs Company.

Then the

Flag of the 92nd Civil Affairs Battalion was uncased by

Colonel James 'Jay' Wolff

95th Civil Affairs Brigade Commander

who then unfurled the

  

Five Unit Citations  and the  12 Campaign Streamers

earned by the   2nd Civil Affairs Company   for our service  in Vietnam

  

with the assistance of

the Commanding Officer and the Command Sergeant Major

of the 92nd Civil Affairs Battalion (Airborne).

LTC  Brian Ebert  holding the Battalion Flag Staff at the left and

CSM  James Cassel  holding the Battalion Flag at the right.

 

     Colonel Wolff  of the  95th Civil Affairs Brigade (A)

with

LTC Ebert  and  CSM Cassel,

The Honor Guard,

The Members of  HHC,  Company A,  Company B,  Company C  and  Company D

92nd Civil Affairs Battalion (A)

 Reporting for Duty

to the

Commanding General of the U.S. Army  Special Operations Command.

   

  

The Presentation of the   'Passing the Torch'  Monument

chiseling in stone

the  Lineal Heritage  between

the 2nd Civil Affairs Company  and   the 92nd Civil Affair Battalion (Airborne)

LTC Brian Ebert   and   CSM James Cassel

Pat Garrity  and  Joe Napp

       
 

Hats Off  -  Photo

( L - R )

  

Standing Back Rows:  Ed Martin,  John Smythe,  Don Kunego,  Joe Napp

Ed Thompson,  Richard Graham (partially hidden),  Wayne Lewis,  Kevin Smith,

Gary Steinhardt,   Joe Frankoski   and   Ron Gorman

   

Standing Front Row:  Pat Garrity,  Bob Geib,  Bob Gruen,  Chuck Stielau,  Ozzie Kinat

John Martin,  Phil Denig,  Tom Hequet  and  Bruce Tilford

  

Kneeling:  David Arkovich  and  Dennis Finley

 
Hats On - Photo
 
Phil Denig  and  Ron Gorman
 

The 1966 Fort Gordon Guys

Joe Napp,  Ron Gorman,  Pat Garrity,  Joe Frankoski  and  Phil Denig

 

Members of the  12th AA Platoon

Dennis Finley,  Bob Geib,  John Martin,  Tom Hequet,  Bruce Tilford,  Wayne Lewis

 

Joe Napp,   Bob Gruen   and    Richard Graham

at the

Special Warfare Memorial Statue

   

Major Patricia Peterson

Operations Officer,   Company  A,   92nd Civil Affairs Battalion (Airborne)

Corps of Engineers,  Airborne Badge,  Sapper Badge,  and  Fluent Russian Linguist,

just our typical  All-American  Daughter.

She jogged over and said

Hi Guys, 

I was born in  Ban Me Thout, Vietnam  in 1968.

Can I get into a picture ?

She turned around with a big smile and a big wave

" Thanks Guys "

and she jogged away as quickly as she came.

  

The Special Warfare Memorial Statue

also known as

the "Green Beret Soldier" or the "Bronze Bruce" Monument.

It is next to the

The Meadows Parade Grounds

which was used for the 92nd Activation Ceremony

and it was named for

Special Forces Captain  Richard J.   'Dick'  Meadows.

He was the  On-the-Ground Leader of  The  Blueboy Team

which was the 14 man  air-assault  and  POW liberation team that

made a long range, deep penetration raid into North Vietnam

on  21 November 1970

in an attempt to liberate POWs at the Son Tay Prison Camp.

The Planned Helicopter Crash and subsequent Air Assault were successful

and did achieve tactical surprise and entry into the POW prison cell areas.

But the POWs were NOT in the Son Tay Prison Camp and

had been moved weeks earlier by the NVA because of local flooding.

All of the Son Tay Raiders returned alive

but they were disappointed that the POWs were not in the Son Tay POW Compound

which was a major intelligence failure.

  

The Son Tay Raiders were volunteers from the U.S.A. based  6th Special Forces Group

who planned and rehearsed the mission in the USA to insure operational secrecy.

       

        

Reunion Interview

        
 

When the 2nd Civil Affairs Company was inactivated in Vietnam

" The BELL "  in the  2nd Civil Affairs Officers Club

was brought home from Vietnam

by  LTC Robert W. Gruen

- - - - -

Jane and Bob Gruen kept it their family room for forty years

then an unforeseen special occasion arose,

the Activation of the 92nd Civil Affairs  Battalion.

  

Old Tradition,

when New Men Reported Into the 2nd Civil Affairs Company

" They Rang the Bell "

Hopefully, the 92nd will continue the tradition.

 

John Martin (67-68) spent many hours polishing  " The BELL "

and then he mounted a plaque

   

2nd CIVIL AFFAIRS COMPANY

VIETNAM

1966 - 1971

    

" The  BELL "

from the

2nd Civil Affairs Officers Club in Vietnam

was presented  by

Robert W. Gruen (R)  -  the Last Commanding Officer of the 2nd Civil Affairs Company

to

LTC Brian Ebert (L)  -  the First Commanding Officer of the 92nd Civil Affairs Battalion

at the

Friday Afternoon Picnic  at the  92nd CA Battalion Motor Pool

  

Kevin Smith

having a 'look-see'  at the  92nd's new Armored Humvee

with GPS  and  a  .50 Cal  on Roof.

A far cry from our  M-151  Jeeps.

- - - - -

And with the GPS,  the Special Operations Center at Fort Bragg

knows exactly where every friendly vehicle is worldwide

and it is

updated every  THREE  MINUTES !

- - - - -

P.S.

An inside joke for the Mail  Man,

if they had GPS back then,  they would have known

'where you were'  and  even her name !

Please Smile  !

And you did smile often after returning from the  Daily Mail Runs

and the many 'wash and service jobs' at the local Car Wash.

Certainly, the  most serviced   3/4 Ton Truck in RVN.

  

Reunion Planner   John Martin

opened the

Friday Evening Reunion Dinner

with  the words  that we did not hear  44 years  ago.

WELCOME  HOME  !

Well Spoken  and  Well Received  by all.

 
The  Reunion  Dinner
 

SKY DIVING  on  Saturday Morning

Tom Hequet  and  Chuck Stielau  had a great time   Skydiving   with  John Martin

on the Saturday after the Reunion.

John Martin jumped 14 times with ARVN units in Vietnam.

  
   

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Together Back Then

and

Together Again

x

  
 

Tom Slusher (L)  and  Rick Parent (R)

A Personal Reunion  in Florida  in 2024

Note the  2nd CA  Cloth Patches.

Rick Parent (L)  and  Tom Slusher (R) in 1967.

       

The 10the Platoon Jeep  lost its battle  when a  4th Infantry Division M113 Armored Personal Carrier

'Tracks'  hit the   Floor of the Jeep   just forward of the passenger seat.

Certainly, some  'Trousers, Tropical Worstered'  (aka Jungle Fatigues)

were surely brown stained during the collision.

The Jeep was  'mortally wounded'  but  the 2CA Troopers were safe

and possibly created a few new pre-mature 'gray hairs'.

The Jeep  ultimately became an  'organ doner'.

 

Medic Don Kloepfel (1966-69)  and  CA-ENG Don Kunego (1966-68)

Served  Together Back Then

with the 11th AA Platoon with the 11th Cavalry Regiment at Xuan Loc

and were  Together Again  at Niagara Falls in 2018

- - - - -

It was short drive thru the neighborhood (USA) for

The Kloepfels from Washington State

to visit

The Kunegos from New York State

at nearby Niagara Falls

- - - - -

Years Ago,  the U.S. Army  'lost'  Don Kloepfel's Service Records

and the  St. Louis Records Center  said  'he did not serve'

BUT

Don Kunego had  THEIR  joint roster  Second Increment  Deployment Orders

and now

The Doc  'Bac Si'    Don Kloepfel    gets his  Meds !

- - - - -

Except for  Basic Training  and  Advanced Individual Training (AIT)

Don Kloepfel  served   3 Years  in the 2nd CA

 

After the 2011 Reunion at Fort Bragg,

which some 12th Platoon Members could not attend,

so they were visited by Friends on the way home !

   
         

George Scott (1967-68)

with

   Bruce Tilford  and   Bob Geib

12th AA Platoon with the 173rd Airborne Brigade

 

Alton Bush (1966-67)

with

John Martin  and   Bruce Tilford

12th AA Platoon with the 173rd Airborne Brigade

   

They definitely did not take " The Short Cut "  on their way home to

Texas,  Minnesota  and  Oregon

with stops in  North Jersey  and  Upstate New York

   

I am glad they had their GPS working

because they certainly failed

the U.S. Army's  Map Reading  and  Compass Courses

because

the "Shortest Distance"  between two points is a  Straight Line.

- - - - -

Lousy navigators   but   GREAT  FRIENDS !

 

     
 

  

Jerry Ritter  and  Joe Napp

17  Nov  2011

       

Not much better with the 'Compass Course'

The  'Shortest Route'  from  Texas to New Jersey

does not run through the Ritter House in Pearl, Mississippi.

Jerry Ritter has been super helpful with all types of information for the website.

Sometimes, you need to meet  face to face  and say   THANK YOU.

    

   

Getting Together again after many years

   

    

Stan Lukasik (L) 1966-1969   and   Ed Martin (R) 1967-68

September 2013  at Stan's House in  Buffalo, N.Y.

      

        

     

TOGETHER  AGAIN

  

Roy Bruk (L)  and Harry Field (R)  went through OCS - together,

then they went through QMC Officers Basic and Civil Affairs School - together,

then were assigned to the 2nd CA - together,

and now   Together Again  -  after 46 Years

    

Lisa and Roy Bruk  with  Linda and Harry Field

Summer of 2013

 

Dwight Young (R)  stopped by in NJ and visited with  Joe Napp (L)

We met on 13 Sep 2011 for the first time since we served together

at Fort Gordon in 1966 and RVN in 1967

 

Kevin Smith,  David Arkovich  and  Robert Mullen

served together in 1970 with the 4th Platoon at Tan An

and they meet for the first time after forty years

in Boston, Massachusetts on 21 July 2011

 

Don Kunego   and  Joe Napp

served in the Company in 1967 and  meet at

Basil T's Restaurant in Red Bank, NJ - the Day After Thanksgiving 2010

     

Bob Geib and John Martin

served together in 1967 and 1968  in the 12th AA Platoon  with 173rd Airborne

and got together recently in Minnesota

 

John Martin  and  Tom Hequet

served together in 1967 and 1968  in the 12th AA Platoon  with 173rd Airborne

and got together recently in Nevada

 

Pat and Judy Garrity   with   Cindy and John Martin

The 2009  Get Together  for the 12th AA Platoon (173rd Airborne)

Pat and John  have gotten together  several times  since serving together 42 years ago !

 

Bill Unger,   Phil Denig,   Joe Napp

Basil T's  -  Dover Twp, NJ

November, 2008

 

Joe Napp   and   Phil Denig   (Retired Military Chaplain - Catholic Priest)

Pilot House  -  Jersey Shore

June 29, 2008

 

The 1982 New York City Reunion 

Some 2nd CA Lieuteanants (1966-68) met at the Essex House Hotel

while other joined in via a Long Distance Conference Call

 
 

Pat Garrity,  Joe Napp,  John Martin

Dennis Santillo attended the reunion but is not in a surviving picture.

Essex House Hotel - New York City

May 1982

 

Ron Schneider,   Jim Weiskopf  and  Joe Napp

( L - R )

On the conference phone with Ron

were

Gary Cusumano  in California,

Charles Hooks  in South Carolina,

Hal Lynch  in Texas,

Ralph Polce  in Florida

and others now not remembered.

- - - - -

Dennis Santillo   attended the reunion but is not in a surviving picture.

perhaps he was the photographer.

- - - - -   

Essex House Hotel - New York City

May 1982

   

The 2013 Reunion of the 173rd Airborne Brigade at Las Vegas   

Some of the Members of the 12th AA Platoon of the 2nd CA (1967-68)

Reconnected with their S-5 Counterparts from 173rd Airborne Brigade

    

John MartinTom Hequet,  Steve Konek (173),  Bob Geib,  Mike Lambrano (173), Bruce Tllford

  
  

   

Replica Unit Patch

Better Quality than the original

    

   

Scan of Shirt Embroidery

Sorry the Scanner Color is not true to life - Civil Affairs Purple

but the Shirt is very well made in 2nd CA Guidon's Color - Purple

Check Reunion Photos above for true color

         

 
                         

Shirts, Hats and Patch are available from

  JOHN  MARTIN

His Phone Number and E-Mail are on our

Members Only Contact List

     

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